Weâve been bringing you 5 new projects from Memphis artists each month but this month, we decided to switch it up a little. To celebrate the holiday season, weâre highlighting a handful of essential Memphis holiday songs to add to your party playlist. Some are classics, some are brand new but all of them are undoubtedly MEMPHIS. Happy holidays WAMM fam <3Â
Gloss Up ft. K Carbon, Slimeroni, & Aleza – â25 Days of Christmasâ
Yea sure, weâve all heard of the âTwelve days of Christmasâ (borrrring am I right?) so itâs about time someone put out a fresh take on the track. Thank god for our first ladies of hip-hop who cooked up something extra Memphis. â25 Days of Christmasâ finds Gloss Up, K Carbon, Slimeroni, and Aleza doing what they do best: flawlessly delivering bars about being boss ass bitches. Grab your matching Christmas pajamas and your drink – the party has officially started.
Carla Thomas – âGee Whiz Itâs Christmasâ
Is it really the Christmas season without Carla Thomasâ iconic âGee Whiz Itâs Christmasâ? The song has all the essential holiday ingredients: cheery, up-tempo production paired with Thomasâ sugary sweet vocals. Itâs a seasonal no-brainer, guaranteed to be a favorite across all generations. In fact, if someone *doesnât* like this song, you might want to double-check your guest list – sounds like the Grinch is at your Christmas dinner.
Swae Lee, Rae Sremmurd & Ear Drummers – “Christmas at Swae’s”
Ok so *technically* Rae Sremmurd are from Tupelo, but for the purpose of this list weâre going to claim them because they put out not 1, but 2 underrated Christmas songs. First up is the piano ballad âChristmas at Swaeâsâ. Itâs a departure from their normally trap-heavy beats and instead features Swae alone on the keys singing about a Christmas love lost. Swaeâs melodies are – as usual – on point, further helping to deliver his emotional message. Sure, itâs not the jolliest song, but sometimes weâre in our feelings during the holidays and thatâs ok too!
Kendrick P. – âWish Listâ
2023 was a huge year for Kendrick P and honestly, 2024 looks like itâll be even bigger for the Memphis artist. But before he gets ready to close this year out, he gifts us one last musical present in the form of a new Christmas song. âWish Listâ is impressively everything weâve come to know and love from Kendrick: sensual vocals floating over silky smooth synthed out production. With a chorus that goes âChristmas everyday when youâre my babyâ, how can you not wanna snuggle up with your special someone and put this track on repeat?
Cheyenne Marrs – âSantaâs Lamentâ
Multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Cheyenne Marrs seemed to pop-up with increasing regularity this year, finally convincing me to tune-in and see what all the chatter was about. Well, I’m sure glad I did, and encourage you to follow suit. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I actually was familiar with Cheyenne Marrs through his work with the local band Spacer, but his debut solo record Everybody Wants To Go Home is what really captured my attention. All of that is to say that Marrs’ recently released a n excellent Christmas tune that is exactly what we would hope for from the burgeoning artist.